Rutte Visits White House: Trump Is Angry Again
Trump will not abandon NATO or U.S. military bases in Germany, irrespective of what NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said at the White House.
No European politician behaves as submissively — indeed, as embarrassingly deferential toward the U.S. administration — as Mark Rutte. All in vain. Since Rutte took office, rhetoric from Washington of the “obsolete” nature of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, tirades against the seemingly “ungracious” and “unreliable” Europeans, as well as threats of a U.S. withdrawal from the alliance have increased both in frequency and intensity. Rutte's visit to the White House on Wednesday is unlikely to change anything.
Not much is known about the meeting, as it was held behind closed doors. So far, all that can be ascertained is that President Donald Trump has expressed even greater irritation with NATO than before. Nothing more is forthcoming. Trump first voiced criticism of NATO during the 2016 presidential campaign, calling the alliance “obsolete.” Since then, all such statements from Washington have apparently been taken at face value in Europe, overstated and used to justify the European Union’s military buildup. As early as 2017, Roderich Kiesewetter, a Christian Democratic Union lawmaker in Germany's Bundestag, said that “Europe can no longer rely on the U.S. nuclear umbrella.”
Of course, the Trump administration has pursued this goal more forcibly than any of its predecessors and, thanks to Russia's war against Ukraine, more successfully, redistributing the financial burden within NATO and pressing Europeans to increase military spending. But aside from that, U.S. fundamental interest in NATO has remained unchanged since its founding in 1949 — even under Donald Trump. For its leading power, the military alliance is the most important instrument for exerting influence over and maintaining control of Europe.
The existence of U.S. military bases in Germany and other European countries, as well as their use for Washington’s wars and drone operations, would not be possible without NATO. Trump will not give up any of that regardless of how Rutte has acted.
No European politician behaves as submissively — indeed, as embarrassingly deferential toward the U.S. administration — as Mark Rutte. All in vain. Since Rutte took office, rhetoric from Washington of the “obsolete” nature of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, tirades against the seemingly “ungracious” and “unreliable” Europeans, as well as threats of a U.S. withdrawal from the alliance have increased both in frequency and intensity. Rutte's visit to the White House on Wednesday is unlikely to change anything.
Not much is known about the meeting, as it was held behind closed doors. So far, all that can be ascertained is that President Donald Trump has expressed even greater irritation with NATO than before. Nothing more is forthcoming. Trump first voiced criticism of NATO during the 2016 presidential campaign, calling the alliance “obsolete.” Since then, all such statements from Washington have apparently been taken at face value in Europe, overstated and used to justify the European Union’s military buildup. As early as 2017, Roderich Kiesewetter, a Christian Democratic Union lawmaker in Germany's Bundestag, said that “Europe can no longer rely on the U.S. nuclear umbrella.”
Of course, the Trump administration has pursued this goal more forcibly than any of its predecessors and, thanks to Russia's war against Ukraine, more successfully, redistributing the financial burden within NATO and pressing Europeans to increase military spending. But aside from that, U.S. fundamental interest in NATO has remained unchanged since its founding in 1949 — even under Donald Trump. For its leading power, the military alliance is the most important instrument for exerting influence over and maintaining control of Europe.
The existence of U.S. military bases in Germany and other European countries, as well as their use for Washington’s wars and drone operations, would not be possible without NATO. Trump will not give up any of that regardless of how Rutte has acted.
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